Good morning, AAHOACON23! The finish line is in sight, though we wouldn’t blame you for wishing AAHOACON could last just a bit longer. We would make a comment about saying we hoped everyone enjoyed Raas Garba Night and the finals of the karaoke night singing extravaganza, but we saw more smiles at both events than at a Christmas parade.

The final day of AAHOACON23 promises to be another great one, as we have yet another fantastic General Session Keynote Speaker lined up in spiritual leader Honorable Sadhguru, in addition to what promises to be a fantastic masterclass, election results announcements, and the highly anticipated Gala Reception this evening.

Let’s make our last day together in Los Angeles a great one!

Founder and head of the Isha Foundation, spiritual leader Sadhguru is the founder and head of the Isha Foundation, based in Coimbatore, India. The foundation, established in 1992, operates an ashram and yoga centre that carries out educational and spiritual activities. Sadhguru has been teaching yoga since 1982. He is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Inner Engineering: A Yogi’s Guide to Joy and Karma: A Yogi’s Guide to Crafting Your Destiny, and a frequent speaker at international forums.

What: AAHOACON23 General Session
When: Today, 9-11 a.m.
Where: West Hall A, LACC

Close out AAHOACON23 in style at this Black Tie Bollywood/Hollywood-themed event!

This year’s AAHOACON23 Gala will feature entertainment from singer-songwriter Mika Singh. His songs include “Bas Ek King” (Singh Is Kinng), “Mauja Hi Mauja” (Jab We Met), “Ibn-e-Batuta” (Ishqiya), and “Dhanno” (Housefull). In addition, he has released several solo albums, appeared on reality shows, and was a previous judge on The Voice India. What: AAHOACON23 Gala Reception, Dinner, and Entertainment When: Tonight, 6-7 p.m. Gala Reception /  7 p.m.-2 a.m. Gala Dinner + Entertainment Where: West Hall A, LACC Attire: Tuxedo, evening/cocktail gowns, formal traditional Indian attire

Thanks, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts for sponsoring Gala Night!

BEST Inhospitable to Human Trafficking Training, Sponsored by AAHOA, is a proven tool that improves hotel safety. Human trafficking harms victims and poses serious safety risks to guests and employees. It can also expose you to substantial legal and financial liabilities. Take this course free of charge and earn the certificate you need to help your staff identify the crime, proactively prevent it from occurring, and protect yourself from legal liability.

Today - 1:30-2:30 p.m. - Room 404 AB, LACC

If you missed any of the masterclasses offered thus far during AAHOACON23, there's one opportunity remaining. This masterclass serves as a complement to the daily education sessions and offer specialized, cutting-edge content geared toward all types of hoteliers.

Demystifying the Digital Marketplace • 1:30-3 p.m. • Room 403 AB, LACC
Improving Profit Contribution through Commercial Strategy.
In collaboration with Kalibri Labs and its co-founder, Cindy Estis Green, AAHOA is proud to host a one-of- a-kind, Elite Masterclass to help demystify the complex digital marketplace. It’s time for hotel owners to move past the days of untracked and unmanaged commissions and transaction fees. Revenue management and market penetration analyses have historically been a good place to start. But, unless your hotel is tracking and managing its business mix, and its net ADR and taking advantage of next-generation metrics and benchmarking, your full hotel may be a lot less profitable than it could be. Not all revenue is created equal.

As the AAHOACON23 Trade Show floor activity was beginning to wind down, the doors of the LACC’s 411 Theater opened for the Tech Pitch Competition - Co-powered by Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP).

Attendees filled the 411 Theater to hear from eight pre-selected group of presenters, all of whom made a pitch centered on products and solutions intended to help hoteliers make money, save money, and protect their investments.

“At the end of the day, we’re hoteliers,” said AAHOA Chairman Nishant (Neal) Patel, as he introduced the competition and underscored its big-picture importance for the industry. “We aren’t technology professionals, which is why one of our priorities at AAHOA this past year has been on addressing this. It’s imperative for the future of our industry that we be more forward thinking when it comes to considering and implementing new technology solutions.”

Outlining the qualifications that would be weighed for each pitch, event emcee RP Rama, AAHOA Education and Professional Development Chair, cited cost of implementation, return on investment, and how the product/service benefits hoteliers. A panel of five judges weighed eight presentations of five minutes each, each of which were followed by a Q&A format with the judges. Concepts pitched included employee payment services, AI-powered solutions, an EV charging network, a passive parking revenue generator, IoT-enabled utilities monitoring, and more. Once all presentations had been made, the judges huddled to select a winner. After intense deliberations, SaaS provider Virdee emerged as the victor for the company's pitch on its virtual reception platform. Thank you to ALL the participants and judges in this exciting challenge. Here's to seeing the continued evolution of this competition

Thank you to everyone who has tweeted, posted, shared, and celebrated on social media their #AAHOACON23 experience thus far.

Here's a quick roundup of just a few of our favorites.

Don't forget to tag AAHOA in your posts and include the #AAHOACON23 hashtag.

AAHOA would like to thank all our valued sponsors for their support, partnership, and participation at AAHOACON23! You are a vital part of making this event possible. We couldn’t do it without you.

The on-site, printed AAHOACON23 Show Guide also is available in a digital format. Get a sneak peek at the all convention details – be sure to check it out here or by clicking the image below.